


silver moon's sparkling (so kiss me)

by SmileHoney



Series: you, me, my whole world (zukka week 2021) [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, M/M, Mutual Pining, Post-Canon, Tattoos, Zukka Week 2021, and also another reunion??? why is this so similar to day 1, another picnic cause apparently that's all i know how to write about, mai and ty lee are there in the beginning to give zuko grief and be zukka warriors, theres no reason for this to be as long as it is... they're just stubborn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-15
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-23 23:26:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30063159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmileHoney/pseuds/SmileHoney
Summary: He couldn’t really think, either, beyond the fact that he hadn’t known Sokka was even going to be getting his tattoos on this trip, or that the sight of him standing there with tattoos and a lopsided smile was surely going to kill him.He realized just how long he had been staring when his eyes flickered up to catch Sokka looking at him with a smug smile and a single eyebrow raised, and he tried desperately to find his words. All that came out, though, was a strained, “You have tattoos.”or,Sokka comes back after six months with some new earrings and a whole lot of tattoos, and suddenly Zuko doesn't know how to focus.
Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: you, me, my whole world (zukka week 2021) [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2211711
Comments: 22
Kudos: 267





	silver moon's sparkling (so kiss me)

**Author's Note:**

> day 2 of zukka week! for the prompt of tattoos
> 
> there are truly an embarrassing number of similarities between this fic and yesterday's and all i have to say about it is that i love tropes
> 
> title from Kiss Me by New Found Glory

Zuko hadn’t seen Sokka in exactly six months, four days, and five hours. 

Not that he was counting. 

Well… Maybe he was just a little bit, but how could he not? Sokka was so vibrant and full of life that every minute without him felt heavy and slow, and the only way for Zuko to handle it was to count the days. It had been awful, waking up everyday and knowing exactly how long Sokka had been gone and how much longer remained until he returned. 

At least until this morning, when he’d woken up and realized it was over- that today, Sokka was coming back. 

And now, after six months, four days, five hours, and one minute, Sokka’s ship was sliding into port slowly. 

Zuko rocked on his heels impatiently as he watched, huffing as he did, and Mai snorted next to him. 

“Zuko,” she warned, though it was unmistakably fond. “Remember, don’t cause a scene. He’s still an ambassador- regardless of how much you’ve missed him-”

“I know,” he interrupted with a groan, trying to get himself to stand still and tame his smile into something less giddy.

He knew he was being entirely too obvious about how excited he was right now, and that if anyone were to see him besides Mai, Ty Lee, and the guards behind them, they’d accuse him of favoring the Ambassador from the Southern Water Tribe. Which was true, but he didn’t need anyone having _actual_ proof of that, nor for them to bring up the fact. Sure, things were better now that it was six years after the war, but there were still some advisors and councilmen who thought he was unfit to rule, and would use his clear preference for a singular individual as evidence- regardless of the fact that the individual in question had been his best friend since he was sixteen. 

He also knew there was another underlying warning in Mai’s tone, which was that he was being entirely too obvious about his feelings for Sokka- about the fact that he’d had feelings for him for years. He’d thought that the time apart while Sokka visited home would have lessened said feelings, but instead it just pointed out to him the fact that he was… Sort of it for Zuko. No one could even come close to filling the gap in his heart left by Sokka’s absence, or make him feel as at ease, or make the rest of the world fade away until it was just the two of them-

He halted his thoughts, knowing that if he continued with them, he wouldn’t be able to contain himself and would end up doing something stupid like kissing Sokka the second he saw him.

“I think it’s sweet that you miss him so much,” Ty Lee said, her painted red lips splitting into a wide smile. “Plus, your excitement is making your aura so much brighter. It’s been so dreary and grey since he left, but now it’s all reddish-orange. Like a sunset!”

Mai burst out laughing, leaning into her girlfriend’s side heavily as she did, and Zuko flushed darkly at the revelation that even his aura had noticed Sokka’s absence.

“Whatever,” he grumbled petulantly, turning away from their smug looks to instead watch the anchor drop and the gangplank lower slowly, anticipation flooding his veins.

“Looks like you aren’t the only one who missed someone,” Mai pointed out, though her shoulders still shook with barely contained laughter.

He was about to ask what she meant, when he saw for himself- a figure clad in bright blue, sprinting down the gangplank that still hadn’t touched the docks yet. The crewmen were all shouting at him to stop, waving their arms, but Sokka paid them no mind. He just sprinted down the metal ramp, and when he reached the edge of the gangplank, he leapt the last few feet onto the ground.

Zuko winced, knowing that he would probably be feeling that in his leg later tonight, but Sokka didn’t seem to care, because he didn’t even slow his pace. And suddenly, he was right in front of him, skidding to a halt with the biggest grin Zuko had ever seen.

Still, Sokka seemed to remember himself because he dropped into a low bow and hurried to say, “Fire Lord Zuko, it’s so wonderful to be back.”

“Ambassador Sokka,” he returned as he bowed too, hardly able to get the words out around his own smile. “I’m so happy to welcome you back to Caldera City. I hope you had a pleasant trip home.”

“I did, thank you.”

They straightened up at the same time, grinning even wider when their gazes caught each other again. They stared at each other for a long moment, just smiling and Sokka shifting his weight from side to side, as if neither of them were sure what to do now.

“Oh, Agni. Just hug each other already,” Mai groaned, and Zuko didn’t need to look at her to know she was rolling her eyes.

Still, he didn’t hesitate to close the wide space between them with a few large strides forward. Sokka wrapped his arms around him just as tightly, warm and strong, and he leaned into the hug heavily, eyes closed as he buried his face into Sokka’s shoulder.

“I missed you so much,” Sokka whispered, his voice soft and low against his good ear, and he flushed.

“I missed you, too. I’m happy you got to go home, but-”

“Six months is a long time. Too long.”

He squeezed Sokka even tighter, and nodded into his neck. “But you’re here now.”

Sokka squeezed back. “I’m here now.”

There was something else behind those seven words, something meaningful that longed to be spoken, but he didn’t get to think about it any longer before there was a polite cough behind him. He realized then just how long they’d been hugging, and that they were very much in public, and he pulled away reluctantly. 

“Um, right,” he cleared his throat. “I should… Let you say hi to them. We can catch up after.”

Sokka smiled at him, a glimmer in his eye. “Of course. I have so much to tell you!”

Without another word, he turned to Mai, holding up his arms with a raised eyebrow. She rolled her eyes again, face impassive, but still returned his hug briefly.

As Zuko watched them, he took the time to take in the ways Sokka had changed while he was gone- there were a few more beads in his hair then there had been before he left, and they glimmered brightly in the sun where they were woven into his wolf tail. There was a bit of stubble on his chin, although Zuko was pretty sure that was just because shaving on the ship was difficult- still, he couldn’t help but find it charmingly handsome. His ears were adorned with more earrings, too, a bar of bone going through the top of his left ear and hoops of silver lining the cartilage below it.

Most noticeably, though, was the fact that Sokka had gotten _strong._ He always had been, of course- it was hard to practice with a sword as much as he did and not pack on muscle, but that was lean, subtle strength. What Sokka had now… This was a different kind of strength. This was the sort of strength that had broadened his shoulders, defined his arms a little more, made his chest and stomach a little thicker, made the long sleeved tunic he wore stretch across his back muscles as he pulled Ty Lee into a hug. This was the sort of strength that came from working hard while hunting, fishing, and living in the South in general, and Zuko had to look away with pink tinged cheeks before Sokka turned and caught him.

Except turning away meant he caught Mai’s gaze, and he immediately flushed even darker- which he didn’t even know was possible, considering he felt like he’d been blushing since Sokka set foot on the cobblestone streets of the caldera. 

“Shut up,” he muttered before she could speak.

“I didn’t say anything,” she teased as she raised her hands in surrender.

“You didn’t need to.”

“If you know what I was thinking without me having to say it, then it’s because you know _exactly_ what you were doing.”

He pointedly didn’t respond, though she was right- he had very obviously been ogling Sokka, and he didn’t need her to tell him that it clearly wasn’t a platonic ogle.

“Are we walking back to the palace?” Sokka asked, pulling his gaze back to him.

“Yeah,” he grinned, letting himself fall back into the familiarity of their friendship; his pining could wait. “I figured you’d want to stretch your legs after two days on the ship. I know you’re used to being at sea, but-”

“It’s great, Zuko,” he stopped him with a kind smile. “Walking sounds wonderful, and it gives us more time to catch up.”

They started walking, Sokka hefting the bag he had dropped over his shoulder, and if Zuko took the moment to appreciate the flex of his arms through his sleeves… No one needed to know.

“How was everyone? Gran Gran, your dad, Katara...?”

“They’re great! They all say hi, by the way. Except Pakku, naturally, because he’s _Pakku_ and he _sucks._ But Gran Gran sent me back with some seal jerky, prepared especially for you- she said she made it using some leftover spices from our last trade shipment. Katara and Aang were disgustingly sappy as always- I swear, they’ve only gotten worse since the engagement, even though they’re still putting off actually getting married for a while. Though they _did_ both say to give you a hug, and promised to come visit next time they swing up to the Western Air Temple. Dad and Bato were also being all gross, but I don’t think it’s intentional. I think they’re just happy to be together after beating around their feelings for so long, so I guess it’s fine. But yeah, they’re all good. It was really good to see them.”

Zuko couldn’t help but smile sappily as Sokka rambled on about them- it was clear how much he had enjoyed being home with them all, and as much as he’d missed Sokka, he knew it was worth it to see him so happy.

“And it was a good trip?”

“Spirits, you have no clue. There were so many amazing moments, I don’t even know where to start. There was all of the hunting, of course- on land and on sea- which was really nice because I just got to hang out with the other men in my tribe. And I got to help make a whole bunch of new canoes too, which I learned is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be.”

“Didn’t you invent submarines _and_ air balloons? What was so challenging about the canoes?” he asked curiously.

“Well for one, there’s the whole shaping and carving process, which takes a really long time, especially when you’re trying to match the curves of the pieces. But also, those pieces are hardly ever the full length needed for the canoe, considering they’re stray planks of driftwood and bone. So then when you’re ready to start building, you have to stitch them together, while also making sure it’s watertight…”

Sokka continued on rambling, explaining the intricacies of Southern Water Tribe canoe construction techniques. He lost Zuko after a while, but it didn’t really matter- he was just happy to listen and watch, caught up in how beautiful he was from the glitter in his eyes to the excited waving of his hands to the passion in his voice. Really, he could have been talking about something as boring as paint drying, and it would have been the most fascinating thing Zuko had ever heard. 

What mattered was that Sokka was once again at his side, walking through Caldera City, standing so close to him that occasionally their shoulders bumped or their hands brushed, and Zuko felt whole again.

When they returned to the palace, the sun hanging high in the sky, Zuko turned to Sokka and asked eagerly, “Lunch? In our usual spot?”

Sokka cocked his head at him. “Don’t you need to get back to meetings and stuff though? I don’t want to keep you from your work.”

“Oh,” he smiled, realizing he must have forgotten to tell Sokka the news. “No. I wanted to be able to spend as much time with you as I could today, so I cleared my schedule.”

Sokka’s face was one of clear surprise, with something softer behind his eyes. “You did?”

“Of course I did, Sokka. You just got back from a six month long trip- it wasn’t just six months without an ambassador, it was six months without my best friend. I missed you, and I didn’t want any work getting in the way of welcoming you back. Besides, I distinctly remember a very smart person telling me once that I should take some more days off, and I can think of no better reason to do so. So… Lunch?”

His look of surprise melted into a soft smile that made firemoths burst to life in Zuko’s stomach. “Thank you, Zuko. Lunch sounds wonderful. I just want to change first, since it’s way too hot for long sleeves, but I’ll meet you there?”

He nodded graciously, trying to hide his elation, and turned away to swing by the kitchens for the picnic basket he’d had them prepare, packed full with all of Sokka’s favorite Fire Nation foods. The kitchen staff all gave him knowing looks as he passed through in a swirl of black and red and barely slowed down enough to call out a hello to the head chef, but he pointedly ignored them. 

Even with the detour, he managed to beat Sokka to their spot, a patch of grass under the willow tree by the turtleduck pond, tucked away in the corner of his mother’s garden. It was a secluded, shady spot, where they could just be Sokka and Zuko for a while instead of the Ambassador and the Fire Lord, and the old tree’s drooping branches bore witness to countless long conversations about anything and everything over cups of tea and meals. Zuko had kept visiting it while he was gone for an escape from all the meetings and paperwork that came with the crown, but it hadn’t been the same- most of what made it special, after all, was Sokka.

But now, unfolding the blanket that the palace staff had set on top of the basket, that old feeling of this being something special had set in, and he sat down to look out at the pond as he waited with content warming his heart.

Just a few minutes later, there were soft footsteps behind him and Sokka’s voice calling out, “Sorry that took so long, I wanted to hang up my clothes quickly before they wrinkled.”

Zuko turned to assure him it was fine, except the words died in his throat and every single one of his thoughts vanished as he caught sight of Sokka striding toward him- or, more specifically, Sokka’s arms. He had changed out of his long sleeve tunic and into one with cut off sleeves, ditching his fingerless gloves and arm wraps at the same time so that the entirety of his arms were on display; including the brand new tattoos that decorated both.

The traditional Water Tribe tattoos- thick bands of dark ink that were interspersed with lines of zig zags, upside down arrows, half circles, crescent moons, triangles, and vertical lines- stood out boldly on both arms, and stretched all the way from his knuckles up to his shoulders. It was beautiful artwork for a beautiful man, Zuko thought, and they accentuated the toned muscle he had packed on.

He couldn’t bring himself to look away.

He couldn’t really think, either, beyond the fact that he hadn’t known Sokka was even going to be _getting_ his tattoos on this trip, or that the sight of him standing there with tattoos and a lopsided smile was surely going to kill him.

He realized just how long he had been staring when his eyes flickered up to catch Sokka looking at him with a smug smile and a single eyebrow raised, and he tried desperately to find his words. All that came out, though, was a strained, “You have tattoos.”

He immediately realized how dumb that sounded, considering that there was no question to his words and that it was quite obvious Sokka had tattoos now, and he flushed darkly. He’d been hoping to keep his feelings under wraps- even though he had a creeping suspicion that Sokka felt the same, considering some of the letters he’d written and what he’d said during their hug, there was still that nagging fear that he was just imagining it. But with all the ogling he’d been doing today and the fact that seeing his tattoos shut Zuko’s brain off, Sokka was going to catch on in no time.

Sokka, though, didn’t laugh at Zuko’s awkwardness or mock his staring. He just sat down next to him and beamed, looking down at the patterns on the backs of his hands. “Yeah! The practice sort of died out during the war, especially when the raids picked up and my father and the other men left to fight. But as we’ve rebuilt our relationships with the Northern Tribe, we’ve reintroduced it. Gran Gran and the other elders focused first on the older men and women- especially the elderly and those who left with my father- but it was finally my turn. I didn’t honestly expect to get them on this trip- my dad and Bato surprised me with it.”

“That’s amazing, Sokka. You deserve them.” He longed to reach out and touch them, to trace his fingers over the lines and curves, but he resisted. Instead he asked, busying his hands with opening their basket and pulling out food, “They all have meanings behind them, don’t they?”

“Thank you,” he murmured, accepting a bag of fire flakes from Zuko. “And yes, they do. Some are for achievements and activities like whaling, ice dodging, fighting in a battle, and that sort of thing. Others are for more simple things, like coming of age, being a brother, the passing of a parent or a friend…” 

He placed a hand on Sokka’s knee as his voice trailed off. “I’m really happy you were finally able to get them. Maybe you could tell me about them sometime?”

Sokka looked from the hand on his knee up to his face with a tender expression that Zuko tried not to read too much into. “I’d love to.”

The sincerity in his expression and voice was almost too much for him to handle, and he said thickly, “That’s… Great. I’d like that.” He cleared his throat awkwardly and pulled his hand away from Sokka’s knee to continue pulling out food. “For now though, I’d love to hear more about your trip. How was the Glacier Spirits Festival?”

Sokka beamed, once again launching himself into an enthusiastic tale of how difficult the long planning process had been, followed by wild descriptions of the celebration and the fun he, Katara, and Aang ended up having.

And if he noticed Zuko getting a little distracted every time he saw his tattoos, then he was too polite to say anything.

❖ ✕ ❖

They settled into their old rhythm quickly, with Sokka returning to his position as ambassador as if he’d never left and Zuko finding work to suddenly be ten times more bearable than it had been the past six months. They did everything together, largely due to the fact that Zuko let Sokka into far more meetings than he really had any right being in- there was no reason for the ambassador from the Southern Water Tribe to be in meetings about shipments between the Fire Nation’s islands or there when he met with concerned citizens about the status of their nation, but he was always there.

If asked, Zuko would insist that it was because Sokka was much smarter than he was, and could therefore come up with much better solutions and ideas then he could- all of which was true. 

Really, though, he let Sokka come to them because he just wanted to spend time with him, and because he liked being able to look up from taking notes to see him scribbling on his own parchment furiously, brow wrinkled in concentration as he did. He let Sokka attend because he made the meetings a little more tolerable, especially when he had to see the old advisors who still hated him and Sokka would sketch out bad caricatures of them.

But along with settling into their old pattern and spending all their time together came the full force of Zuko’s feelings for Sokka. Every single day, he was reminded just how gone for him he was- every laugh, every joke, and every passionate rant or story reminded him he could listen to Sokka for the rest of his life and never grow tired. Every brush of their fingers, every arm slung over his shoulders, every hug set him on fire and reminded him just how much he longed to take Sokka’s hand and never let go. Every blue tunic stretched across his strong chest, every blinding smile, and every glimmer of silver earrings reminded him that he could see Sokka everyday and never grow tired of his beauty. 

Every single thing Sokka did reminded Zuko just how in love with him he was.

He could handle all these traitorous thoughts, had been for years since he fell for Sokka on their trip to Boiling Rock, if it weren’t for the tattoos.

Sokka had been wearing lots of tunics with cut off sleeves because of the heat, which meant that the dark ink was almost always on display- which meant Zuko had a hard time looking anywhere else. They were just so beautiful, wrapping around his strong arms, and he longed desperately to trace the patterns and know what they all meant. 

He knew if he asked Sokka would tell him, but he also knew that he wouldn’t be able to keep himself from making his feelings obvious in that situation, so he never asked.

Instead, he just kept his curiosity to himself and hoped no one noticed how his gaze drifted to Sokka’s arms, over and over again.

Of course, though, because Zuko had the worst luck in the world, almost everyone noticed.

They were in a meeting with ministers of energy and commerce, trying to figure out how to make trade between the nations more efficient without putting a drain on energy resources. It wasn’t an area Zuko was very well versed in beyond being able to provide advice on which routes between the nations were fastest, so he was a little out of his depth. Sokka, however, was very much in his comfort zone, and had launched into a long explanation of different technological solutions that could be used for energy sources. He was using a lot of technical jargon that had the other ministers nodding along enthusiastically but that Zuko just… didn’t understand. 

He tried to pay attention, he really did- it was important, after all, and it was Sokka proposing the idea- but then Sokka started using his hands, which meant Zuko’s gaze was drawn to his tattoos, and suddenly he completely lost track of the discussion. All he could focus on was the shifting black ink, how beautiful they were, how strong Sokka was to have sat through such a long and elaborate process, how many amazing things he had done to deserve such markings, how they drove Zuko crazy-

“Fire Lord Zuko?” a voice cut through his thoughts suddenly. “What do you think?”

He started, whipping his head away from Sokka at his left to look around the room and everyone else. They were all staring at him expectantly, some of them with very knowing looks, and his cheeks immediately burned red.

“Um, yes, I’m so sorry, I zoned out there. What do I… What do I think about what?” he asked meekly.

He spared a glance at Sokka, who was looking at him with his chin cupped in his palm and a mischievous glimmer in his eyes. He quickly looked away again.

“Ambassador Sokka was just proposing an idea for a way to harness energy from the sun to power some of our trade ships. We were wondering what you thought about continued research into his plans?” one of the ministers explained patiently, a small smile tugging at her lips as she looked between them quickly.

“Oh. Yes, of course. Whatever Ambassador Sokka thinks on this matter, you have my approval for. I trust his judgement implicitly, and he’s never been wrong before. If further research and planning is what he recommends, then we can table this decision until we have more information.”

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sokka straighten up suddenly, looking at him sharply. He wasn’t sure why, considering it was hardly the first time he’d deferred a decision on a matter such as this to Sokka, but he still glanced over and gave him a supportive smile.

Sokka’s cheeks, surprisingly, became tinged with pink. “Thank you, Fire Lord. That’s incredibly generous of you. Hopefully our research can turn something useful up.” 

“Of course, Ambassador Sokka. Thank you for your dedication to this matter, and to the rest of you as well. Now, if there’s nothing else, I think we can go ahead and end this evening’s meeting? You all have done a lot of work and deserve a nice night off.”

There were wide smiles all around the room at the prospect of an evening off, and the ministers and advisors in the room quickly shook their heads to say there was nothing else.

“Wonderful,” he smiled warmly, rising to his feet. “In that case, please enjoy your night off.”

Everyone filed out of the room quickly as they chatted eagerly amongst themselves, except Sokka who stayed behind, taking a purposefully long time packing up his scrolls, ink, and paintbrushes.

When the last of them had left, Zuko collapsed back into his seat and groaned into his hands. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t paying attention, Sokka. I tried, I really did, but-”

He was cut off by Sokka’s laughter and a warm hand on his shoulder. “Hey, it’s alright Zuko. I can catch you up later if you want.”

Zuko looked up at him, relishing in the warmth of his touch. “Why not now? I don’t have any more meetings or anything, I have time.”

“Because even Fire Lord’s deserve a break. We can work later- just enjoy the night off.”

The intensity of Sokka’s gaze left no room for argument, so he just sighed and nodded. “Alright, fine… I assume you have a plan for tonight?”

Sokka beamed, and Zuko immediately knew he’d made the right decision.

❖ ✕ ❖

Sokka sent him back to his room with clear instructions after they quickly ate dinner to, and he quotes, _“put normal clothes on and let your hair down”_ while he took the liberty of getting everything ready. He hadn’t really explained to Zuko what that everything was, only that after he was less Fire Lord Zuko and more Zuko he should head up to their usual spot on the roof. He trusted Sokka, though, and the excitement in his blue eyes was contagious, so he went off to his room with minimal grumbling. 

He changed out of his heavy robes and into a light tunic and trousers and let his hair out of it’s tight top knot. He didn’t let it all the way down, not wanting to deal with hair falling into his eyes all night, but he left half it down and tied the other half back into a loose bun. 

By the time Zuko managed to make it up to the rooftop to meet Sokka, the moon hung high in the sky, casting bright beams of light across the roof.

Sokka was already down on the flat part of the roof that had become their spot over the years, ankles crossed and leaning back on his elbows as he stared up at the full moon. His hair was loose around his shoulders and he was bathed in silver light, his tattoos seeming to glow, and Zuko’s breath caught in his throat. 

He must have made a noise, because Sokka turned to look at him over his shoulder, a lazy smile spread across his face.

“Are you gonna keep standing there, or are you going to come over here?”

“I- Uh, no, I’m coming over,” Zuko stuttered, his feet already tracing the familiar path over the uneven roof tiles. 

“You didn’t let your hair down,” Sokka said as he sat down.

“Sure I did,” he responded, ignoring how Sokka sounded almost… Sad. “I let it half down. I just didn’t want to deal with hair being in my face all evening.”

“I guess that makes sense… And I do like your hair like this. It’s pretty.”

Zuko was glad it was already mostly dark other than the bright light coming from the moon, because if it wasn’t, Sokka most definitely would have seen the bright blush that spread across his cheeks. “Oh. Thank you. You’re uh… You’re pretty too.”

He cringed, because telling someone their _hair_ was pretty was very much different than telling someone _they_ were pretty, and he was being entirely too obvious, especially when combined with how he’d been staring before-

“Thanks, buddy. I try,” Sokka joked, tipping his head back to gaze at the moon as he did.

Zuko joined him, copying his posture, and they sat in a peaceful quiet for a long time. Eventually, Zuko rolled his head to the side to look at Sokka. His eyes shone brightly in the moonlight, and his face was open and relaxed, a subtle smile tugging at his lips, and Zuko ached to just reach over and kiss him. 

Instead, he turned his gaze to Sokka’s tattoos, once again tracing the patterns with his eyes and wishing he could do it with his fingertips, instead. 

“Can I touch them?”

It took him a moment to realize he’d said it out loud, and it only truly sank in when Sokka looked at him with a furrowed brow and asked, “Can you touch what?”

His cheeks burned red once more and he said awkwardly, “Your tattoos. Can I… Can I touch them? You can say no, obviously, I’m sure it’s sort of weird-”

“It’s not weird at all, Zuko,” Sokka said gently, shifting so that he was sitting up, and Zuko followed his lead again. 

They just stared at each for a moment, eyes locked as the air crackled with something like anticipation, but before he could ruminate on it, Sokka placed his left hand in Zuko’s right. 

His touch burned, the callouses he’d earned from years of fishing and using weapons and building boats rough against Zuko’s palm, although the rest of his skin was soft. 

Gently, with a slight tremor, Zuko pulled Sokka’s left hand closer to himself and began to trace a finger across the two lines of perfect circles on the back of his hand.

When Sokka spoke, his voice was just as quiet. “Those honor the family and loved ones I’ve lost. The first one is for my mother and the second is for Yue. With these tattoos, I can always carry them with me.”

Zuko smiled at him softly, running a gentle finger across them once more before moving to the next band, a wide stripe of half circles. “What about this band?”

“Those are for being a brother. Katara has upside down triangles for being a sister.” 

As Zuko slid his fingertips to each of the next bands, tracing their patterns, Sokka continued explaining them to him in a low voice. He had a wide range, from a band celebrating Bato as his step-father and one he’d gotten for his first successful whaling trip. One band marked him as a man in his tribe, another as an inventor, another as a protector. The entire upper portion of his arm, from his shoulder to his elbow, was full of little lines that honored him as the chief’s son. 

“These are amazing, Sokka,” he whispered- he knew he could speak loudly, but somehow it felt wrong in the stillness of the night. “Is your right arm the same?”

Sokka pulled his left hand away, and before Zuko could mourn the loss of his touch, replaced it with his right hand with a shake of his head.

“The ones on my right hand and arm all honor me as a warrior, and symbolize a battle I fought in during the war. The band of chevrons around my knuckles are for when I defended my tribe from… Well, from you, the first time we met,” he laughed awkwardly. “The chevron is meant to be like a boomerang, especially with how it circles my fingers and comes back around. The next band of crescent moons and the waves represent the battle at the Northern Water Tribe. The moon is for Yue, while the waves are a symbol of strength and bravery in protecting our sister tribe. The hexagons are for the battle in Ba Sing Se, and have harder lines and more angular shapes as a way to symbolize the Earth Kingdom. The alternating open and filled in triangles are for the Day of Black Sun- the colored in ones showing how the sun was eclipsed. The vertical lines are for when we rescued my dad and Suki from Boiling Rock, and are meant to be like the sword I held off Azula with.”

He ran his finger across each band lightly as Sokka addressed it, reverent. Up close like this, illuminated by silver light, they were even more beautiful and detailed, and he lost himself in admiring each pattern, separated from the next with a solid black band. 

There were still fifteen bands above those, though, each one with a series of triangles with dots in the middle, stretching up his bicep to his shoulder, and Zuko traced the zig zag created by the triangles softly. Goosebumps followed his touch. 

“What about these ones?”

“One for each airship I helped stop during Sozin’s Comet,” he explained, sounding almost breathless. 

At the top of his arm, on the round of his shoulder, was the swirling symbol of the Water Tribe, and Zuko traced it slowly- starting with the circle around it, then each line of waves, then each of the three swirls. Sokka’s skin was warm beneath his fingertips, but even so, when Zuko pulled his hand away Sokka shivered. 

Quickly, Sokka reached out and snagged Zuko’s wrist, guiding his fingers back to his shoulder, but he didn’t let go of his wrist even once they were there. 

Zuko’s throat was suddenly thick, the message there clear- _Don’t go,_ Sokka was saying. _Don’t let go._

He looked up with wide eyes, only now realizing how close they were. He had rotated at some point so that he was facing Sokka little more directly, both to see and trace the tattoos better, and his knees were pressing in Sokka’s thigh. Their faces were just a few inches apart, Zuko having ended up leaning in steadily, and the smooth skin beneath his fingertips burned. Sokka’s eyes were dark, his pupils eclipsing the brilliant blue Zuko loved so much, and his lips were parted slightly as he gazed down at Zuko in turn.

There was something heavy in the air as they stared at each other, neither of them making any move to pull away or speak- not that Zuko imagined he could, even if he tried. It was as though Sokka had his own separate gravity that was keeping him put, keeping him tied down, keeping him from running away from this moment as he’d done so many times before. 

He knew, suddenly, that they were on the precipice of something great. 

With a deep breath, he pushed them over the edge.

“Sokka, you know I… You know how I feel for you, don’t you?” he whispered quietly. “You know that I’m in love with you?”

“I hoped,” Sokka began, voice cracking around his smile and quiet words. “I hoped, but I never really knew for sure and I never wanted to assume anything.”

Zuko’s heart jumped. “You hoped?”

“With everything in me, I hoped and wished and dreamed that maybe you felt the same. I became more sure after I got back, but it still seemed too good to be true to think that maybe you… Maybe you love me the way I love you.”

He shifted his hand on Sokka’s shoulder so that his fingers and palm were splayed across it, and squeezed Sokka’s hand that was still in his right, his heart pounding in his chest. This was everything he’d ever dreamed of hearing- that Sokka _loved_ him- and he thought he might have floated away if it weren’t for Sokka’s touch keeping him grounded.

“It’s not too good to be true, Sokka. Because I… I love you. I have for a long time, and I know I’ll love you for the rest of my life. You consume my every waking moment and my dreams. When I look back on memories, you’re there, and when I think about my future, it’s with you. While you were gone, I was just a shell of myself, and then you got back looking like _this_ and I fell twice as hard as I already had. You’re just… _Agni,_ I love you so much that I don’t know what to do with it all.”

Sokka was smiling softly, eyes watery with tears, and he laughed wetly when Zuko was done. “I don’t know why you always say you’re bad with words, because that was the most amazing thing I’ve ever heard anyone say... I love you, Zuko.”

“It’s all the plays I read,” he chuckled lightly, squeezing Sokka’s hand again. “They give you some good lines.”

“And here I was, about to ask you to do an activity with me.”

He lifted their joined hands to his lips and brushed a chaste kiss across one tattooed knuckle. “You can still ask. I would say yes.”

Sokka shivered, eyes glowing brightly as he looked at him, tender and hopeful and full of love. “I think I’d rather ask you to kiss me. What do you think?”

Zuko just smiled, his heart racing, and under the moon’s sparkling silver light, finally leaned forward to kiss Sokka.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you as always for reading and for leaving comments/kudos, and check out my tumblr! ([@zukosadragon-ace](https://zukosadragon-ace.tumblr.com/))


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